The present application claims priority under 35 USC 119 to Japanese Patent Application No. 2000-301133 filed on Sep. 29, 2001 the entire contents thereof is hereby incorporated by reference.
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a two-/four-wheel drive switching device for a vehicle.
2. Description of Background Art
In a certain conventional four-wheel vehicle for off-road travel it is possible to select two operation modes according to traveling conditions, one being a two-wheel drive mode-in which power is transmitted to only front wheels or rear wheels and the other being a four-wheel drive mode in which power is transmitted to both front and rear wheels.
For switching between such operation modes, a two-/four-wheel drive switching device or clutch mechanism is mounted in a power transfer path between an engine and the front wheels or between the engine and the rear wheels. Generally, the two-/four-wheel drive switching device is attached to a final reduction unit which is disposed between both front wheels and the engine, or between both rear wheels and the engine.
In mounting the two-/four-wheel drive switching device to the final reduction unit, a mounting portion is projected outwards from an outside of the body of the drive switching device, and likewise a mounting portion is projected outwards from an outside of a casing of the final reduction unit. Then, these face each other and connected together with bolts or the like.
However, in case of thus connecting the two-/four-wheel drive switching device and the final reduction unit with each other through such mounting portions projected outwards from the device body and the casing, problems occur.
Inside the vehicle, where the final reduction unit and the two-/four-wheel drive switching device are installed, suspension units for supporting the front and rear wheels, and a steering mechanism for steering the front wheels are provided. Thus it is impossible to ensure a sufficiently large space.
Therefore, if the two-/four-wheel drive switching device installed in the small space provided when the mounting portion projects outwards from the device body, interference occurs between the mounting portion and other components, and any attempt to avoid such interference will encounter a limited position for installation of the drive switching device.
The present invention has been accomplished in view of such a conventional problems and it is an object of the invention to provide a two-/four-wheel drive switching device for a vehicle capable of avoiding interference with another component as far as possible at the time of installation.
For achieving the above-mentioned object, the two-/four-wheel drive switching device described in claim 1 of the present invention is attached to a vehicle to permit and inhibit the transfer of power between a final reductions unit and an engine, the vehicle comprising a pair of front wheels supported on the right and left sides of a front portion of a body frame, a pair of rear wheels supported on the right and left sides of a rear portion of the body frame, a steering shaft secured rotatably to the front portion of the body frame, the engine which is mounted on a central portion of the body frame, and the final reduction unit which is disposed between the front wheels and connected to the engine, wherein all portions connected to the final reduction unit are positioned below an upper surface of a body of the device.
Further scope of applicability of the present invention will become apparent from the detailed description given hereinafter. However, it should be understood that the detailed description and specific examples, while indicating preferred embodiments of the invention, are given by way of illustration only, since various changes and modifications within the spirit and scope of the invention will become apparent to those skilled in the art from this detailed description.